Drop Site Daily: January 8th, 2026
ICE agent kills Renee Nicole Good, a 37-year-old mother of three in Minneapolis. The Trump administration baselessly accuses the killed woman, who was acting as a legal observer, of “terrorism” and “rioting.” Venezuelan communes mobilize against the U.S. in Caracas, according to reporting from Drop Site’s Andreína Chávez live from the rally. Venezuelan Interior Minister Diosdado Cabello estimates 100 people were killed by last week’s U.S. operation. The U.S. is working “directly in cooperation” to sell seized Venezuela oil, says U.S. Energy Secretary Chris Wright. Secretary of State Marco Rubio claims U.S. intervention in Venezuela “isn’t going to cost us any money.” Israeli bombing in al-Tuffah kills three. Yasser Abu Shabab’s militia claims it killed two Hamas operatives in Gaza. The Palestinian town of Kafr Manda town declares a general strike. President Donald Trump suspends U.S. funding of UN entities and other international organizations. U.S. State Department halts aid to Somalia. The Transportation Department cuts California’s funding because it delayed revoking immigrants’ driver’s licenses. House votes to subpoena Jeffrey Epstein associate Les Wexner. Saudi-led coalition strikes in Yemen kill at least four people. Drone strikes continue in Sudan, with attacks reported across the country. A plot to kill Burkina Faso’s military leader, Capt Ibrahim Traoré, is thwarted. U.S. President Donald Trump and Colombian President Gustavo Petro speak over the phone about U.S. escalation in the region.
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Venezuela
- Communes rally against the U.S. in Caracas: Venezuela’s worker communes—a key part of the Chavista movement—marched through Caracas, with protestors carrying signs denouncing President Donald Trump and Secretary of State Marco Rubio. Venezuelan protestors charged U.S. leaders of kidnapping and murder, and they demanded the release of Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro and First Lady Cilia Flores. Drop Site contributor Andreína Chávez was in attendance and filed video reports from the scene:
- “We are here to demand that the North Americans who took our president and our first lady return them,” said Orangel Vera, 18. “All the youth are backing our president. We are in the streets.” Vera is a member of the Juana de Ávila South Communal Circuit in Zulia state.
- “Give us back our president Nicolás Maduro,” said María Guaicara, 61. “He is the constitutionally elected president of Venezuela. Give back our first combatant, Cilia Flores. They were not captured. They were kidnapped.” Guaicara is a member of the Éxito Comunitario Socialista commune in La Vega, Caracas.
- “We are here demanding the return of our president and our congresswoman Cilia Flores, kidnapped by the United States,” said Iskra Pérez Sangronis. “The communes of this country are prepared to fight in any scenario to defend the homeland and the future.” Pérez is a member of the Gigante Cacique Tiuna Commune in San Pedro, Caracas.
- Death toll at about 100, Cabello says: Venezuelan Interior Minister Diosdado Cabello said Wednesday that about 100 people were killed and a “similar number” wounded in last week’s U.S. military operation in Venezuela in what Cabello called “an inhuman act.” Cabello said that civilians were killed in residential areas and at a medicine storage facility struck during the attack. He said the U.S. destroyed a center for producing and storing insulin and several research centers during the invasion. “What kind of cruelty and malice is involved in attacking a center like that?” Cabello asked.
- U.S. working “directly in cooperation” to sell seized oil, Wright says: U.S. Energy Secretary Chris Wright said Washington is working “directly in cooperation with the Venezuelans” to restart sales of 30–50 million barrels of sanctioned Venezuelan crude, while the oil is currently stuck in onshore and offshore storage, according to reporting from Bloomberg. Speaking at a Goldman Sachs conference, Wright said the U.S. plans to market the stored oil then oversee increased production in Venezuela. Wright added that, as talks with Venezuela’s government progress, Washington would allow imports of parts, equipment, and services to stabilize petroleum production and prevent the industry’s collapse, with hopes of enabling major U.S. oil companies to re-enter Venezuela.
- Energy Department fact sheet: A fact sheet released by the Energy Department on Tuesday details a sweeping U.S.–Venezuela energy deal that places Washington in direct control of how Venezuelan oil is “marketed,” “sold,” and monetized. President Donald Trump is expected to meet on Friday with executives from Chevron, Exxon Mobil, and ConocoPhillips at the White House, further integrating private oil firms into the seizure of the country’s assets, CNN reported.
- Venezuela operation “isn’t going to cost us any money,” Rubio says: At a press conference with Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, Secretary of State Marco Rubio said that President Donald Trump’s Venezuela operation “isn’t going to cost us any money.” Rubio claimed that proceeds from the new oil deal will benefit American taxpayers rather than burden them. Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth dismissed questions about the cost as “disingenuous.”
The Genocide in Gaza
- Casualty counts in the last 48 hours: Over the past 48 hours, the bodies of four Palestinians arrived at hospitals in Gaza, including three recovered from under the rubble, while seven Palestinians were injured, according to the Gaza Ministry of Health. The total recorded death toll since October 7, 2023 is now 71,395 killed, with 171,287 injured.
- Total casualty counts since ceasefire: Since October 11, the first full day of the ceasefire, Israel has killed at least 425 Palestinians in Gaza and wounded 1,206, while 688 bodies have been recovered from under the rubble, according to the Ministry of Health.
- Palestinian child killed at home: An 11-year-old Palestinian girl was killed by Israeli strikes on her home in Jabaliya on Thursday, according to the Associated Press. Hamsa Housou was inside her home when shells and shrapnel hit the building as Israeli ground troops combed the area. The family had returned to their home on October 11, a day after the “ceasefire” went into effect.
- Israeli bombing in al-Tuffah kills three: Two Palestinians were killed, and three others were injured, after Israeli forces fired three missiles at a home belonging to the Alwan family in the al-Tuffah neighborhood of eastern Gaza City on Wednesday evening, according to Ultra Palestine and other Arabic language outlets. The Israeli army said the strike targeted a “Hamas leader” and responded to alleged gunfire in northern Gaza, a claim made after the bombing and unsupported by the evidence, as noted by journalist Tamer Qudaih.
- Yasser Shabab’s militia claims it killed two Hamas operatives: An Israeli-backed Palestinian militia said Wednesday it killed two Hamas operatives during a raid in Rafah. The group, known as the Popular Forces, said the men refused to surrender and that a third Hamas member was detained, Reuters reported. The Popular Forces were founded by Yasser Abu Shabab, who was killed in December and replaced by his deputy, Ghassan Duhine. The group operates in territory Israel controls under the October Israel-Hamas deal.
- Trump to announce composition of his “Board of Peace” next week: President Donald Trump is expected to announce the members of his “Gaza Board of Peace” next week, according to Axios. If implemented, the board—now mandated by the UN—would oversee Gaza’s administration, reconstruction, and funds, coordinate a “stabilization force,” and appoint a Palestinian technocratic committee to manage the enclave’s day-to-day affairs. Trump is expected to chair the body, which will include roughly ten Arab and Western leaders, even beyond the term of his presidency.
Israel, the West Bank, and Lebanon
- Palestinian town declares a general strike: The Palestinian town of Kafr Manda in Israel declared a general strike, raised black flags, and announced public mourning after three Palestinian citizens of Israel were recently killed in a shooting in the nearby village of Bir al-Kasr, according to Al-Jarmaq News. At least seven Palestinian citizens of Israel have been killed in shootings so far this year, local Palestinian leaders told the Times of Israel, and they attributed the deaths to the rise of organized crime, enabled by failures of the Israeli authorities to curb illegal weapons or protect Palestinian communities in Israel.
U.S. News
- ICE agent shoots and kills a woman in Minneapolis, according to eyewitness testimony and video: An Immigration and Customs Enforcement agent killed Renee Nicole Good by shooting her three times at point blank range. A 37-year-old mother of three who recently moved to Minneapolis, Good was killed by ICE when she was on the scene as a legal observer during a federal immigration enforcement operation. Eyewitness accounts say Good was driving a vehicle on a congested street, as ICE agents shouted contradictory orders at her to leave and to get out of the car. Good reportedly complied with the order to leave the area as she waved an ICE vehicle to pass, and then two agents approached her vehicle, with one agent grabbing her car’s door handle and the other agent approaching her car from the front. The second masked agent shot Good once through the windshield, and stepping to the side of the vehicle, the agent shot her twice from the side window. ICE agents reportedly stopped a resident, who identified himself as a physician, from attending to Good, while ICE vehicles blocked emergency responders from arriving to the scene. Federal authorities and Trump administration officials claim the woman drove a vehicle toward agents, prompting an officer to open fire. Video shows the car’s wheels turned to the right to leave the scene, as well as the agent stepping to the side of the car as he shot her. Officials have not released body-camera footage of the incident.
- Countrywide protests and condemnation of ICE: The shooting comes amid ICE’s targeting of immigrants across the Twin Cities where 150 people have already been arrested. Over the past four months, immigration officers have fired on at least nine people inside vehicles across five states and Washington, D.C., according to the Washington Post, including the fatal shooting of Mexican immigrant Silverio Villegas-Gonzalez near Chicago. In each case, ICE agents claimed self-defense, though video accounts, eyewitness testimony, and statements from lawyers have disputed the claims that officers faced imminent danger. ICE activity has sparked countrywide protests and condemnations, with reportedly 10,000 people attending protests and vigils in the Twin Cities and with Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey telling ICE to “get the fuck out of Minneapolis.”
- Administration accuses victim of “domestic terrorism”: Department of Homeland Security spokesperson Tricia McLaughlin described Good as part of a group of “violent rioters” and claimed the agent fired in self-defense. DHS Secretary Kristi Noem claimed ICE’s action in Minneapolis was in response to a “coordinated” terror attack of people “ trained” to “use their vehicles as weapons.” Democratic Rep. Robin Kelly announced on Wednesday plans to introduce articles of impeachment against Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem following the deadly shooting.
- ACA subsidy update: The House of Representatives is set to vote Thursday on a measure that would renew enhanced health insurance subsidies that expired at the end of last year. The three-year extension is expected to pass the House, but it may not go far in the Senate, where a similar measure failed in December.
- Trump suspends U.S. participation in 66 international organizations, including its climate change commitments: President Donald Trump signed an executive order on Wednesday suspending U.S. funding of 66 international organizations, most of them affiliated with the United Nations. The State Department said the bodies were “redundant,” “mismanaged,” or a threat to U.S. sovereignty.
- The Transportation Department will cut California’s funding because it delayed revoking immigrants’ driver’s licenses: California will lose $160 million in federal transportation funding after delaying the revocation of roughly 17,000 commercial driver’s licenses issued “unlawfully” to immigrants, the Transportation Department says. Department Secretary Sean Duffy alleged that the state missed a federally required deadline consequent to an audit that found widespread violations in the state. Duffy accused Gavin Newsom’s administration of prioritizing immigrant protections over public safety, while California paused the revocations until March amid lawsuits alleging discriminatory targeting, particularly of Sikh truck drivers.
- House votes to subpoena Epstein associate Les Wexner: The House Oversight Committee voted Wednesday to subpoena billionaire retail executive Les Wexner as part of its investigation into Jeffrey Epstein. The committee also issued subpoenas for Epstein estate executors Darren Indyke and Richard Kahn. Representative Robert Garcia called the vote “an enormous step forward” for survivors, while noting that Wexner—the former head of L Brands, which owns Victoria’s Secret and Bath & Body Works—was named, though not charged, in a heavily redacted 2019 FBI email listing alleged “co-conspirators” of Epstein.
- Hochul and Mamdani to unveil expanded child care plan in New York: New York governor Kathy Hochul and New York City mayor Zoran Mamdani are unveiling a plan on Thursday to vastly expand free or affordable child care across the state over the next several years. “There’s one thing that every family in New York can agree on, the cost of childcare is simply too high,” Hochul said in a statement. “I’m proud to partner with Mayor Mamdani and leaders across our state to make this a reality, turning that foundation into a concrete roadmap that will transform the lives of working parents and kids across our state.”
International News
- 50 STC officials unaccounted for: The UAE-backed Southern Transitional Council said it has lost contact with more than 50 of its officials who traveled to Riyadh for talks, raising fears they were detained by Saudi authorities. A senior STC official told Middle East Eye the delegation arrived around 3 a.m., was placed on a bus by Saudi officials, and has not been heard from since.
- More on Aidarous al-Zubaidi: Saudi Arabia claimed the United Arab Emirates smuggled wanted separatist leader Aidarous al-Zubaidi out of Yemen and flew him to Abu Dhabi via Somaliland, after skipping planned peace talks in Riyadh. He allegedly traveled from Aden by boat to Berbera before flying—alongside UAE officers—to Mogadishu, and then Abu Dhabi with his aircraft’s identification briefly switched off. The Southern Transitional Council and the UAE have not commented, Al Jazeera reported, as Yemen’s internationally recognized government announced al-Zubaidi’s removal from its Presidential Leadership Council and ordered a treason investigation, a move that could deepen rifts between Saudi Arabia and the UAE.
- Also in Yemen: At least four civilians were killed and six wounded in Saudi-led coalition airstrikes on al-Dhale on Wednesday, hospital sources told AFP. The coalition targeted the home province of a separatist leader. Medical staff at Al-Nasr Hospital and Al-Tadamon Hospital said the casualties included civilians caught in the strikes.
- State Department suspends aid to Somalia: The State Department announced Wednesday that it has suspended all U.S. assistance benefiting the Somali Federal Government, using as its pretext an incident in which Somali authorities allegedly destroyed a U.S.-funded World Food Program warehouse at the Mogadishu Port and seized 76 metric tons of food aid intended for civilians. The U.S. claims it has a “zero-tolerance policy” for diversion of humanitarian assistance (one not apparently operative in Gaza). U.S. officials said aid will remain paused until Somalia takes accountability and corrective steps, in a country plagued by chronic poverty, food insecurity, and humanitarian need.
- Fighting continues between the SDF and the Syrian Government in Aleppo: At least four people were killed, and thousands were displaced as fighting in Aleppo between Syrian government forces and the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces continued on Wednesday, according to Reuters. Shelling of the city resumed after clashes the day before killed six, including women and a child. An estimated 10,000 civilians have the fled neighborhoods under fire.
- Drone strikes remain an ongoing part of daily life in Sudan: Drone strikes continued across Sudan on Tuesday, killing and wounding civilians in River Nile State, Gezira State, and West Kordofan, according to Radio Dabanga. The outlet reported that RSF suicide drones hit residential areas in Atbara, a Sudan Shield Forces camp in Gezira’s Butana region, and a market in the Anjmina area southeast of Abu Zabad, with local sources saying civilians were among those killed and injured.
- Survivors recount systematic RSF rape, including infants:* A new Al Jazeera investigation documented widespread sexual violence by Sudan’s UAE-backed Rapid Support Forces, citing survivor testimony, medical evidence, and NGO findings. Women fleeing Gezira and residents of el-Fasher described being singled out at checkpoints, witnessing killings, and being gang-raped by RSF fighters. A report by SIHA documented nearly 1,300 cases of sexual and gender-based violence since April 2023, likely a severe undercount. A senior doctor at Omdurman Maternity Hospital said more than 14 female infants under two were raped, citing NGO documentation. UNICEF has confirmed over 200 child sexual assault cases since early 2024.
- Burkina Faso claims it foiled an assassination attempt on Traoré: Burkina Faso’s military government said it has foiled a plot to assassinate junta leader Ibrahim Traoré, alleging the plan was orchestrated by former ruler Paul-Henri Damiba, who was overthrown in September 2022. Security Minister Mahamadou Sana claimed the operation included plans to kill Traoré and strike key institutions, was funded in part by the Ivory Coast, and was intercepted hours before it was to be carried out, allegations neither Damiba nor Ivorian authorities have addressed. Authorities say leaked video footage captured alleged plotters discussing assassination methods and subsequent attacks on senior military and civilian figures, with several arrests already made.
- Trump and Petro speak over the phone: President Donald Trump and Colombian President Gustavo Petro spoke by phone on Wednesday, a conversation colored by escalating threats of U.S. intervention in the region and Washington’s public intimations that Colombia’s leader is complicit in drug trafficking. Trump, however, called it “a great honor” to speak with Petro and said “arrangements are being made” for a White House visit. The leaders discussed “the situation of drugs and other disagreements,” and Petro, who said the call lasted about an hour, requested to restore dialogue between the two countries. This is quite a turn of events, as Trump last week hinted that a U.S. military operation in Colombia “sounds good to me” and accused Petro of facilitating cocaine exports.
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